“Q” is for the Family Quilts That Charm Us

by Barbara Miller Beem

Ah, the month of May…no longer winter but not yet summer. Little wonder, then, that even songwriters can’t decide which way to go.

On the one hand, there’s “the flirtiest celebration of moral mayhem ever to spring from a Broadway stage.” That was the description of the 1960 song trilled by Julie Andrews in her Broadway role as “Camelot’s” Guinevere. “Tra la! It’s May! The lusty month of May!”

On the other hand, there’s Mother’s Day, officially declared a national holiday in 1914 by President Woodrow Wilson. One year later, Howard Johnson penned his song, an acrostic of the word “Mother” (“‘M’ is for the many things she gave me”). You know the rest. Confronted with which way to go with this month’s “Charm,” I decided, not surprisingly, that it’s time to get sentimental. Let’s begin.

On a personal note, the strong and caring women in my family, my grandmothers (and my grandmothers-in-law), as well as my beloved Mom (and my mother-in-law), could not have been more unlike each other. From their interests and talents to their geographic and economic backgrounds, each woman had her own story. But in the end, they had one common thread in common: They all knew how to use a needle. Lucky for me, some of their handwork has survived.

I’ll begin with my paternal grandmother. Edna spent many years as a seamstress in a Baltimore factory, where her job was to set collars on uniforms for medical professionals. Fabric deemed unusable was sold to the factory’s seamstresses for pennies. Her contribution of these yard goods would later prove to be critical.

When my maternal grandmother, Ruby, was widowed at a young age, she spent many long weekends with my family. During her visits, she taught me how to make yo-yo quilts. We cut out as many circles as we could from Edna’s donations of fabric, turned the edges, and, with a pulled running stitch, created “yo-yos,” which we stitched together to make bed coverings.

On the other side of the family, my grandmother-in-law, Grace, created lovely quilts from lush fabrics. They were kept in her attic and later lost to history. But her daughter-in-law (that would be my mother-in-law) was a frugal quilter on a tight budget. Jean recycled the fabric of old shirts, pajamas, and whatever other cotton pieces she had around the house, using it to make a hand-stitched quilt for each of her grandchildren.

Which brings me to my Mom and me, who had good intentions during the Bicentennial. We signed up for a class at a local quilt shop, purchased coordinating fabric (my color scheme was, of course, red, green, and gold), and, well, let’s just say that our intentions were good.

So what remains?

The quilt that Jean made for my daughter, Katherine, has survived, although not in mint condition. For years, Katherine slept under this pink-bordered quilt. These days, her middle child continues to bundle up in it when visiting me. Sad to say, some of the fabric, old when it was first incorporated into the quilt, is wearing thin. But this quilt was never meant to be a museum piece. It was made to keep a child warm. And it continues to serve that function.

And then there are the yo-yo quilts. Certainly not practical for providing warmth, they were always intended to be homely coverlets. All good, but as it happens, they are also dust collectors, with no real way to clean them. And they fall apart under their own weight.

Sigh.

For years, I displayed several yo-yo quilts on a quilt rack. And then I decided that there had to be a better way to appreciate these family heirlooms. Consequently, I selected four squares displaying a variety of fabrics, all of which were beginning to unravel. After repairing (and reinforcing) them, I paid a visit to my local frame shop. The results? A stunning oversized piece of wall art.

But what to do with the leftover squares? Feeling optimistic, I’ve thought about mending and repairing individual squares, having them framed, and presenting them to younger family members. That remains a possibility. I’ve also seen that squares can be transformed into wearable vests. Not in love with that idea. On the other hand, I’m still toying with combining several squares to make table runners.

So why am I telling you this? I’m looking for suggestions. Any ideas? Enjoy or preserve? Or is there a way you’ve managed to do both? I’m looking forward to learning how you have chosen to best enjoy these charms, the second time around.

Tell me about it at thecharmjoac@gmail.com.